On this day in 565: St Columba spotted the Loch Ness Monster

The Loch Ness Monster has long fascinated Scots and tourists alike, with regular reported sightings of the aquatic beast.

But the earliest written reference linking such a creature to Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands can be found in the biography of Saint Columba, the man credited with introducing Christianity to Scotland.

Loch Ness Monster - Front Page of Weekly Scotsman on June 1960.

On this day, August 22, in A.D. 565, Columba was said to have been on his way to visit a Pictish king when he stopped along the shore of Loch Ness.